Charlin Greenmont
Charlin Greenmont is a male human NPC in the Om campaign. Summary Charlin is a farmer from Gildorn who fell on ill luck and lost his farm. He and his family decided to travel to Elira at the promise of available farmland. He hired Wu Xen to help him and his family move and booked passage on the Derry Boy. The ship was sank and Charlin and his family were imprisoned by the pirates, but Wu and the Royal Explorers freed him along with the rest of the prisoners. Charlin eventually did reach Elira, and joined a caravan to Dunkirk to settle south of the area to become a founding member of Fernstead. History Charlin is a farmer from Gildorn and spent many years farming the land with his wife, Suzel, and children, Debbin and William. Through ill luck and a few bad crops, his farm failed and Charlin decided to take advantage of the rumors he had heard that cheap farmland could be acquired in Elira and that it was subsidized by the Crown for farmers who made the journey there to settle in New GIldorn. Charlin sold most of his family's possessions to and booked passage on a ship called the Derry Boy to go to Elira. He also took the precaution of hiring an extra pair of hands to move the possessions and supplies of his family, a wondering monk named Wu Xen, who agreed to work as a laborer for Charlin in exchange only for passage to the New World. Disaster In mid Dragon, 465, disaster struck when the Derry Boy was attacked by pirates under the flag of Silas Thatcher. The ship was sank and Suzel was killed in the attack by flying debris. Wu snapped Charlin out of his sudden grief and urged him to escape with his children while he tried to stop the rush of water below decks. Charlin collected his children and attempted to get to a lifeboat but they were captured by the pirates and taken back to Socortia. Charlin was installed in a jail in the center of Darsah, the pirate's town, along with the other passengers and crew of the Derry Boy, as well as some passengers and crew from an Orlesean Ship called the Sea Horse. Debbin and William were taken elsewhere, though Charlin could get no answers from the pirate as to where. A few says later the pirates brought in another influx of crew and passengers, this time from a Gildornian sailing ship called the Morning Star. Rescue Charlin was shocked when, after a few more days, Wu and several people he did not recognize, arrived in the prison and defeated the pirate guards an freed everyone. Charlin begged Wu to find and save his children and one of Wu's new companions, a native Umani named Jubal, speculated that they may have been taken to the "Pleasure House." Charlin begged Wu to spare them from such a fate, and the monk advised that he would do all in his power to protect and free Debbin and William. Wu introduced his other companions, the Royal Explorers, and led the freed prisoners in a mad dash to the docks to commandeer a ship and flee. On the way, Wu and Fynn lagged behind but later caught up with William and Debbin in hand, much to Charlin's great relief. The Royal Explorers and freed prisoners slew a pirate captain named "Blackbeard" and some of his men on the way to the docks, and once there flooded the Scourge and took it from "Bloody" Anne Adler and her crew. Charlin, no warrior, hung back and did not participate in either battle and was focused entirely on the safety of his children. Onboard the Scourge Jubal and the prisoners from the Derry Boy and Sea Horse explained that not all of the captured were held in Darsah. Many of the prisoners were sent to the emerald mines the pirates controlled to perform forced labor alongside enslaved native Umani people. Jubal further stated that the Umani were suffering a civil war at the moment. Their king had recently died and control of the tribes was split between Queen Aziza, the late king's daughter, and her cousin Akembe who had forged an alliance with Silas Thatcher and the pirates to try to seize control. Based on the papers found in the captains quarters it was clear that the Pirates were forging an alliance with the Orleseans. Wu and the Royal Explorers decided to have Jubal take them to Aziza to discuss a possible alliance with Gildorn. At Jubal's suggestion the Scourge sailed around to the north side of Socortia to drop anchor so Wu, Jubal, and the Royal Explorers could go ashore to treat with Queen Aziza. A sailor from the Morning Star, "Black" Bill Nimbert, was left in command. Charlin did his best to help where he could and stay out of the way where he could not. Battle with ''La Flèche'' After 4 days Leandra, Jasper and Fynn returned to the Scourge. ''They explained that the others were mounting a rescue operation to free those who had been enslaved in the emerald mines, but that in the meantime they were to masquerade as Silas Thatcher and "Bloody" Anne Adler and rendezvous with the Orlesean ship ''La Flèche to try to ruin the potential alliance between the Orleseans and the pirates. Again, Charlin did his best to keep himself and his children out of the way. The following day, on the 27th of Dragon, 465, the Scourge rendezvoused with La Flèche. ''Jasper pretended to be Silas Thatcher and Leandra pretended to be "Bloody" Anne Adler for the ruse. The Orlesean diplomatic envoy, Luic Dargent, Marquis de Provonce, and his assistant Jean-Paul came aboard along with a contingent of Orlesean marines. The ruse ultimately failed, however, and after a short meeting the Orlesean delegation returned to their ship and immediately attacked the ''Scourge. Charlin and his children stayed below decks during the fight, the horrible memory of the sinking of the Derry Boy and the death of Suzel on all their minds. Thankfully, this time was different, and La Flèche, was forced to withdraw. In spite of the victory, however, the Scourge was also damaged, and sailed back to Socortia to lay anchor and effect repairs. "Black" Bill was again left in command while Leandra, Jasper and Fynn went ashore to meet up with the rest of the Royal Explorers. He called upon anyone with carpentry skills to assist in the repairs, and Charlin revealed that he had picked up a few minor carpentry tricks from the years of building fences and such around his farm. "Black" Bill assigned him to work with a repair crew to try to patch some of the damage the ship had suffered in the battle. Sailing for Elira The Royal Explorers returned on the 28th of Dragon, with the rest of the crews and passengers for the Sea Horse and the Derry Boy with them. The Royal Explorers were being viewed, essentially, as the owners of the ship and they decided to officially name Noel Gorehammer as the captain, and to change her name to the Sea Bitch. One of Noel's first acts as captain was to name "Black" Bill as the First Mate. Charlin's position as a member of the repair crew was solidified during the journey and he was glad to be able to pitch in and help out. Debbin and William were also tasked with running messages back and forth on the ship and helping with several minor tasks. Charlin was frequently forced to admonish William for climbing the rigging. The boy enjoyed it greatly, but Charlin feared he would fall and hurt himself. Arrival in Waymere The Sea Bitch reached New Gildorn on the 28th of Father, 465. The ship was greeted by three Gildornian Naval ships. After a brief meeting on the largest of the ships, the ''Thunderer'', Commodore James Upton ordered a few of his officers to come aboard and captain the ship to port. Once in Waymere, Charlin began to despair. What money and possessions he'd still had from Gildorn were either taken by the pirates or at the bottom of the Trackless Ocean with the ruins of the Derry Boy. However Wu advised he would help the Greenmonts and, after he and Jubal joined the Royal Explorers in a brief meeting, he presented Charlin with one hundred gold and Fern informed him that she'd arranged for her profits from the cargo on the Sea Bitch to subsidize the purchase of Farmland for the colonists who had lost everything on the Morning Star and the Derry Boy who were settling south of Dunkirk. Shocked and touched Charlin thanked them both profusely. Journey to a New Beginning A few days after reaching Waymere the Crown organized a caravan to head to the new farmland that had been purchased. The Greenmonts, as well as most of the colonists from the Morning Star and Derry Boy, were part of the caravan. To Charlin's pleasant surprise Wu and the Royal Explorers had been hired by the crown to escort the caravan and they, along with half dozen Gildornian soldiers, were to provide protection for the journey. The Journey proved to be fought with right from the beginning when the caravan was attacked on the road by a rogue Wild Runner named Korroticus, who was defeated by the Royal Explorers but managed to escape. Midway Inn When the caravan reached Midway Inn, what should have been a respite in the journey turned into a mutiny when the captain of the guard there, First Rider Davin Firth murdered the local cleric and attempted to cover it up by convincing his men to slay the Royal Explorers and the entire caravan to cover up his crime. The situation turned into a huge battle in the middle of the courtyard and Charlin focused on getting his children to safety while the battle raged. Firth's men were mostly slain and Firth himself was executed by Varis Dorn, the owner of the Inn. Still, Wu again proved his generosity to Charlin by purchasing a rocking chair for him and a few toys for William and Debbin from a local elven woodworker. The chaos of the battle led to a delay in Midway Inn, and Wu began to appeal to patriarchs of the farming families about the idea of making their new community to be inclusive of the elves rather than carry on the oppressive policies that had thus far ruled New Gildorn. Charlin found the idea agreeable, arguing that the elves knew the local area and land better than the humans could and that a good relationship was in everyone's best interests. He spent a sizable amount of time speaking with another prominent farmer on the caravan, Linus Holmes. The caravan finally left Midway on the 4th of Gatekeeper, though Wu and the commander of the Gildornian soldiers, Captain Hunter Brynan, stayed behind to help reorganize things after the recent battle and decimation of the local watchmen. The Elven Caves Barely a day out of Midway Inn a fierce storm struck the region, forcing the caravan to take shelter in a nearby cave until the storm passed. Unfortunately William and Debbin and gone to explore the caves with a trio of other boys named Rork, Sterf and Minn. The children vanished into the caves, and Charlin and the other parents refused to move on without their children. The Royal Explorers went into the caves after the children, but after half a day they still had not returned. Worse, while the caravan waited at the caves for the explorers a group of Kirathi elves arrived, keeping their distance but maintaining a hostile posture. Thankfully at that time Wu caught up to the caravan and explained that he'd parlayed with the elves, and they'd agreed to give the caravan until nightfall to vacate, or the elves would evacuate the settlers themselves. Wu stated that he would venture into the caves and left orders with the ranking Gildornian soldier, Private First Class Steno, to depart with everyone by nightfall no matter what. Steno obeyed his orders and come nightfall, evacuated the caves even though there had been no sign of the Royal Explorers or the children. Charlin was reluctant to leave, but the knowledge that Wu was down in the caves looking after his children left him with enough faith that they would be safe and he followed Steno's ordered to leave. The caravan set up camp nearby to await word of their missing members. A couple hours after dark the Explorers returned, with the children in tow, their pockets stuffed with coins. The elves had invited the caravan to share their fire that night, and idea which Charlin readily supported in the hopes it would set a good tone for the fledgling community's relationship with the local elves. Most of the local farmers were convinced to accept the offer and the elves hosted the caravan to a small feast that night. Founding of Fernstead The Caravan finally reached Dunkirk on the 5th of Gatekeeper and after a brief stay to supply they headed south to their purchased plots of land. Thanks to Fern and Wu, the settlers found themselves in a superior financial situation than most colonists in their circumstances would be. To honor the generosity of Fern, who had purchased the majority of the plots of land for the settlers, they named their new community Fernstead. Charlin became a local community leader, recognized for his calm demeanor and intelligence. As a result of their financial stability when agents of Baron Webb came to the new town offering them unfavorable loans for grain and tools, the colonists were able to decline, funding their startup with the more coin that Wu and Fern had arranged for them or utilizing the loans at more favorable rates that they'd secured for them in Waymere. This angered the Baron, who began to spread rumors that the people of Fernstead were deviants, seditious and "elf lovers." The latter accusation apparently took hold because Charlin and Linus had agreed that good relations with the local elves was favorable and that elf and half-elf settlers would be welcome in their community, going so far as to sign a charter written by Fern that expressly said this. Personality and Abilities Charlin is a quiet and intelligent man. Were he born in a higher class his intelligence would allow him to go quite far, but as a common born farmer, his opportunities were markedly limited. Charlin loves his children very much and they are his primary focus. He still mourns his wife deeply, but knows he must press on for the sake of his children if nothing else. Charlin is a highly capable farmer and administrator and is a passable carpenter. He considers Wu Xen to be a very good friend and his highly grateful for all the monk has done for him, once declaring that hiring him as a handyman back in Gildorn was "the best decision I've ever made." Category:Om Category:Characters Category:NPCs